Arthur Marshall
Encyclopedia
Arthur Marshall, MBE
(10 May 1910 – 27 January 1989) was a British writer and broadcaster, born in Barnes, London in the UK
. He was best known as a team captain on the BBC
's Call My Bluff.
and Christ's College, Cambridge
, where he became President of the Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club
, and wanted to be an actor. As he could not find enough acting work he became a school teacher (modern languages), again at Oundle School
.
His first work in entertainment was writing scripts for three-minute radio sketches in 1935, and a year later began reviewing - with school-girl stories in the New Statesman.
During the war Marshall's knowledge of French and German led to his being enrolled in the Intelligence Corps, and he was soon sent as part of the British Expeditionary Force (World War II)
to northern France. After the rapid German advance he soon became a part of the Dunkirk evacuation. He wrote in his autobiography; "Absence of food, coupled with exhaustion, made the nights seem unusually cold and there is little of comfort, save protection of a sort, to be found in a sand dune. One's childhood love of sand and beaches disappeared in a trice." Later in the war he was appointed a Security Officer with the rank of Major to Combined Operations, and by the end of 1943 was transferred to Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force
HQ in Bushy Park, Twickenham. On June 6, 1944 the invasion of Europe began and the SHAEF HQ followed it. In 1945 Marshall was in Flensburg
and lodged on Hitler's yacht at the time that Alfred Jodl
and Wilhelm Keitel
were being interrogated. At the end of the war, with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, and an MBE, he returned to Oundle School
as a Housemaster.
During this period Marshall had some success on radio and the stage. His wartime radio programme A Date with Nurse Dugdale was very popular, and he wrote numerous revue sketches for performers such as Hermione Gingold
. He adapted the novel Every Third Thought by American writer Dorothea Malm into the play Season of Goodwill. This starred Sybil Thorndike
and Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies
, but was not a success. He also wrote the British version of the French play Fleur de Cactus which had been adapted for the American stage by Abe Burrows
' as Cactus Flower. This starred Margaret Leighton and Tony Britton
and was a smash hit on the West End
stage, until Leighton left to go to Broadway
.
He appeared on radio and TV occasionally and published books of humorous pieces among other writings. The most widely known of these were his skits on the life and antics of public schoolgirls. From a relatively early age he had been an ardent admirer of the girls' school stories of Angela Brazil
. He found them hilarious, although he noted "Miss Brazil had, of course, no comic intention when she started, in 1906, to write her books."
In 1954 he left Oundle and, after being private secretary to Victor, Lord Rothschild
, worked for the London theatrical firm H. M. Tennent. In the fifties he began work in the theatre in London
as a scriptwriter and also began having his humorous books published. As he became better known he appeared on radio and TV (although his first radio broadcast had been in 1934), and then in 1979 began his time as a regular team captain on Call My Bluff, which continued until shortly before his death. Marshall took over from Patrick Campbell
. They had been friends for many years, ever since they both used to write, from around 1948 onwards, for Lilliput
.
Marshall was also a newspaper and magazine columnist, writing for The Sunday Telegraph in the 1970s and 1980s, and enjoying an association with the New Statesman
that began in 1935 when he wrote his first of many Christmas reviews of books for girls, and ended in 1981 when he was sacked from its "First Person" column, which he had been writing since the beginning of 1976, allegedly for being overtly sympathetic to Margaret Thatcher
.
Having retired to Devon
in 1970 where he shared a cottage with his partner, Marshall suffered a minor heart attack in 1988; he began writing the second part of his autobiography, but died shortly after a more serious illness.
He also edited Salome, Dear, not in the Fridge, Never Rub Bottoms with a Porcupine, Whimpering in the Rhododendrons, and Giggling in the Shrubbery.
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
(10 May 1910 – 27 January 1989) was a British writer and broadcaster, born in Barnes, London in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. He was best known as a team captain on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Call My Bluff.
Life and career
Charles Arthur Bertram Marshall was the son of Charles Marshall, an electrical engineer from Colchester and Dorothy from Manchester. He was educated at Oundle SchoolOundle School
Oundle School is a co-educational British public school located in the ancient market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire. The school has been maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City of London since its foundation in 1556. Oundle has eight boys' houses, five girls' houses, a day...
and Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
, where he became President of the Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club
Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club
Founded in 1855, the Amateur Dramatic Club is the oldest University dramatic society in England - and the largest dramatic society in Cambridge....
, and wanted to be an actor. As he could not find enough acting work he became a school teacher (modern languages), again at Oundle School
Oundle School
Oundle School is a co-educational British public school located in the ancient market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire. The school has been maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City of London since its foundation in 1556. Oundle has eight boys' houses, five girls' houses, a day...
.
His first work in entertainment was writing scripts for three-minute radio sketches in 1935, and a year later began reviewing - with school-girl stories in the New Statesman.
During the war Marshall's knowledge of French and German led to his being enrolled in the Intelligence Corps, and he was soon sent as part of the British Expeditionary Force (World War II)
British Expeditionary Force (World War II)
The British Expeditionary Force was the British force in Europe from 1939–1940 during the Second World War. Commanded by General Lord Gort, the BEF constituted one-tenth of the defending Allied force....
to northern France. After the rapid German advance he soon became a part of the Dunkirk evacuation. He wrote in his autobiography; "Absence of food, coupled with exhaustion, made the nights seem unusually cold and there is little of comfort, save protection of a sort, to be found in a sand dune. One's childhood love of sand and beaches disappeared in a trice." Later in the war he was appointed a Security Officer with the rank of Major to Combined Operations, and by the end of 1943 was transferred to Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force , was the headquarters of the Commander of Allied forces in north west Europe, from late 1943 until the end of World War II. U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was in command of SHAEF throughout its existence...
HQ in Bushy Park, Twickenham. On June 6, 1944 the invasion of Europe began and the SHAEF HQ followed it. In 1945 Marshall was in Flensburg
Flensburg
Flensburg is an independent town in the north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg is the centre of the region of Southern Schleswig...
and lodged on Hitler's yacht at the time that Alfred Jodl
Alfred Jodl
Alfred Josef Ferdinand Jodl was a German military commander, attaining the position of Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High Command during World War II, acting as deputy to Wilhelm Keitel...
and Wilhelm Keitel
Wilhelm Keitel
Wilhelm Bodewin Gustav Keitel was a German field marshal . As head of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht and de facto war minister, he was one of Germany's most senior military leaders during World War II...
were being interrogated. At the end of the war, with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, and an MBE, he returned to Oundle School
Oundle School
Oundle School is a co-educational British public school located in the ancient market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire. The school has been maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City of London since its foundation in 1556. Oundle has eight boys' houses, five girls' houses, a day...
as a Housemaster.
During this period Marshall had some success on radio and the stage. His wartime radio programme A Date with Nurse Dugdale was very popular, and he wrote numerous revue sketches for performers such as Hermione Gingold
Hermione Gingold
Hermione Gingold was an English actress known for her sharp-tongued, eccentric persona, an image enhanced by her sharp nose and chin, as well as her deepening voice, a result of vocal nodes which her mother reportedly encouraged her not to remove. She starred on stage, on radio, in films, on...
. He adapted the novel Every Third Thought by American writer Dorothea Malm into the play Season of Goodwill. This starred Sybil Thorndike
Sybil Thorndike
Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike CH DBE was a British actress.-Early life:She was born in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire to Arthur Thorndike and Agnes Macdonald. Her father was a Canon of Rochester Cathedral...
and Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies
Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies
Dame Gwen Lucy Ffrangcon-Davies, DBE was a British actress and centenarian. She was born in London of a Welsh family; the name "Ffrangcon" originates from a valley in Snowdonia...
, but was not a success. He also wrote the British version of the French play Fleur de Cactus which had been adapted for the American stage by Abe Burrows
Abe Burrows
Abe Burrows was a Tony and Pulitzer-winning American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage.-Early years:...
' as Cactus Flower. This starred Margaret Leighton and Tony Britton
Tony Britton
Anthony Edward Lowry "Tony" Britton is an English actor. He is the father of presenter Fern Britton, scriptwriter Cherry Britton and actor Jasper Britton.-Life and career:...
and was a smash hit on the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
stage, until Leighton left to go to Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
.
He appeared on radio and TV occasionally and published books of humorous pieces among other writings. The most widely known of these were his skits on the life and antics of public schoolgirls. From a relatively early age he had been an ardent admirer of the girls' school stories of Angela Brazil
Angela Brazil
Angela Brazil was one of the first British writers of "modern schoolgirls' stories", written from the characters' point of view and intended primarily as entertainment rather than moral instruction. In the first half of the twentieth century she published nearly 50 books of girls' fiction, the...
. He found them hilarious, although he noted "Miss Brazil had, of course, no comic intention when she started, in 1906, to write her books."
In 1954 he left Oundle and, after being private secretary to Victor, Lord Rothschild
Victor Rothschild, 3rd Baron Rothschild
Nathaniel Mayer Victor Rothschild, 3rd Baron Rothschild, GBE, GM, FRS was a biologist by training, a cricketer and a member of the prominent Rothschild family...
, worked for the London theatrical firm H. M. Tennent. In the fifties he began work in the theatre in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as a scriptwriter and also began having his humorous books published. As he became better known he appeared on radio and TV (although his first radio broadcast had been in 1934), and then in 1979 began his time as a regular team captain on Call My Bluff, which continued until shortly before his death. Marshall took over from Patrick Campbell
Patrick Campbell, 3rd Baron Glenavy
Patrick Gordon Campbell, 3rd Baron Glenavy , known as Patrick Campbell, was an Irish journalist, humorist and television personality....
. They had been friends for many years, ever since they both used to write, from around 1948 onwards, for Lilliput
Lilliput (magazine)
Lilliput was a small-format British monthly magazine of humour, short stories, photographs and the arts, founded in 1937 by the photojournalist Stefan Lorant. The first issue came out in July and it was sold shortly after to Edward Hulton, when editorship was taken over by Tom Hopkinson in 1940....
.
Marshall was also a newspaper and magazine columnist, writing for The Sunday Telegraph in the 1970s and 1980s, and enjoying an association with the New Statesman
New Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
that began in 1935 when he wrote his first of many Christmas reviews of books for girls, and ended in 1981 when he was sacked from its "First Person" column, which he had been writing since the beginning of 1976, allegedly for being overtly sympathetic to Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
.
Having retired to Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
in 1970 where he shared a cottage with his partner, Marshall suffered a minor heart attack in 1988; he began writing the second part of his autobiography, but died shortly after a more serious illness.
List of writings
- Nineteen to the dozen
- Girls will be Girls (1974)
- I Say! (1977)
- I'll let you know (Musing from 'Myrtlebank')
- Smile please (Further Musings from 'Myrtlebank')
- Life's Rich Pageant (autobiography)
- Sunny Side Up
He also edited Salome, Dear, not in the Fridge, Never Rub Bottoms with a Porcupine, Whimpering in the Rhododendrons, and Giggling in the Shrubbery.